"Now and then, with great rarity, there came a blending of steel and wood and brass and a man's knowledge into one rifle, when it all came together just ... exactly ... right, and a weapon of such beauty and accuracy was born that it might be actually worshiped." Just knowing what a gunsmith thinks of his work makes you want to read about it and learn how a gun is made

The conflict is in the perception of the beloved rifle as it can be an amazing work of art and at other times it can be seen as a powerful life-taking object. Like any other gun, treat it as if it were loaded. As the theme seems to be rifles/guns don't kill people, it's when a loaded gun falls into a person's hands that's when the killing starts. This book is a prime example of today's society as gun control is a huge issue.

This book can be emotional towards certain people as in contains some things that are sensitive and sad, as there are multiple main characters, and all of them besides one has a sad story for example the first main character Cornish who is a gunsmith the one who actual makes the gun spends a great amount of time and effort to successfully make a work of art. Now when a man comes along named John Byam Cornish is forced to sell his masterpiece which he does not want but in order to provide for his family he has to. Which is sad considering that he took a lot of time and effort and was partially attached to it. And after he sells it, John Byam, the new owner later joins the colonists in the fight against The British.

Now after the beginning of the book, it starts to get boring and repetitive as the gun is bouncing back and forth with multiple owners. This is where the book starts to get bad and actually where I lost lots of interest. But in the end, it gets sad and unpleasant.

I would recommend this book “The Rifle'' to only a certain audience because I really enjoyed the beginning part of the book, the part in which he makes the rifle because of how descriptive it is, and at some points, I could imagine the gunsmith using his hands to craft the firearm. It started to get progressively tedious and boring as the gun was passed down and then sold often to then ended up in a mechanic's hand, and in the end, there was a terrible accident that happened which I won't spoil. All and all it was a good book in the beginning but towards the middle it started getting repetitive and I wasn't really interested in it anymore. But if you're one for guns and a little bit of war and history this book would be an alright book. ( )

Gary Paulsen is an excellent storyteller, and I have read a number of his books about nature and survival. As I started reading The Rifle, I was entranced with his descriptions of early America, and the tale of a gunsmith determined to make the best rifle he could. It wasn't until I got about halfway through this small book before I started seeing some indication that this was not just a tale of a man and a rifle, but I continued reading to the end.

I cannot and will not recommend this book, because, unfortunately, the author turns it into a heavy-handed political statement, and ruins the enjoyment of the first part. What a shame. ( )

Everyone should read this book! ( )

Old Children's Book. Liked it as a kid, but haven't read it in years. ( )

The Rifle is about a gunsmith name Cornish McManus that builds a Rifle of such accuracy that he knew he could never build another like it. But McManus has to sell the rifle to make money. McManus sells the rifle to John Byam that uses it in the American Revolution. The Rifle then passes down to other owners until present day. But when the rifle gets pass down to the new owners, none of them check to see if the rifle is loaded. ( )